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“Therefore let all the faithful pray to You while You may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them. You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance,” (Psalm 32:6-7).

Friends, if it seems like I am writing a lot about the Rapture lately, it’s only because God keeps bringing the Rapture to my mind. Honestly, I can only think of one reason why He would do that: because the time is short. I was surprised by this verse because I’ve read through the Psalms many, many times, but I don’t remember ever reading anything in there about the Rapture.

Pray to God while He may be found! In the midst of the post-Rapture chaos it is going to be difficult to calm your heart and pray, and even more difficult to hear His voice. The antichrist will arrive on the world scene with powerful demonic deception. He is already in the world today, and already very well-known among the world’s decision-makers. He’s ready to step in and “solve” the world’s problems and restore order. [I’m not going to name any names here, but with a little research, you can discover the one man in the whole world who fits all the prophecies.] The Catholic Church is probably going to tell people that there has been a mass abduction by aliens. And the antichrist is probably going to claim to be Jesus, the mahdi (Muslim messiah), and an alien.

I know! It sounds like science fiction! It is surreal just to be writing this. But when you see all this happen, remember where you read it and when.

Pray to God while He may be found. But what should we be praying? Jesus told us what to pray:

Then He spoke to them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man,” (Luke 21:29-36 NKJV, emphasis mine).

We should be praying that we may be counted worthy to escape the Tribulation. It’s going to get really ugly. Christians will be beheaded for their faith. And many will take the Mark of the Beast out of cowardice (see The Damned Cowards!). Are you ready to have your head cut off for your faith?

Besides praying, we should be diligently doing the work that God has given us to do. God has given each of us a task to do for the Kingdom. If you’re too busy to do the work that God has given you, then you’re too busy. I’ll bet you’re never too busy to watch TV, check Facebook, or play computer games. Keeping you busy is one way that the enemy keeps you ineffective as a Christian. He will sometimes have you do a whole lot of “Christian” work in order to keep you from doing that one thing that God has called you to do. Often we agree to do things to which we are not called just because we don’t know how to say no. Go over your calendar with God, and ask Him what things you need to quit doing. Then have the courage to quit those things. People will complain. They will say that you’re letting them down. They will try to put a big guilt trip on you. I know because I did this. It’s really hard. You might lose some friends. But keep in mind that it’s more important to be faithful to God.

Keep your eyes on the prize! Remember that it’s not your works that save you, but laziness could cost you your head. Stay focused! Pray to God while He can still be found. And never forget: God is good!

Part Two

Pre-Tribulation Rapture

If viewed from an historical Jewish point of view, the evidence for the Rapture to occur before the Tribulation is overwhelming. Also overwhelming is the venomous response that some people have to the idea of a pre-tribulation Rapture. Between those 2 things, I almost feel intimidated about trying to present it all here in a way that will make sense.

Nevertheless, I will attempt to do so because I believe that it is very important for believers to be ready. Those who have been following my blog know that recently I fasted for 21 days, putting the question to God: “Given that these are the End Times, what should we be doing to be prepared for what comes next?” It was during that fast that I became aware that the Rapture is likely to be “what comes next.”

To begin with, there is a lot of misinformation on the internet about the End Times. Every wacko theory is broadcast on the internet from Obama being the antichrist to the “mark of the beast” being to worship God on the wrong day of the week. Because the things written about the End Times in Daniel and Revelation are so fantastic, many people take them as allegorical. Some of those same people take Noah’s Ark, the Burning Bush, and Jonah in the Fish (see my recent post A Pipsqueak and a Fish Story) as being literal, yet they say that the future things are allegorical. That kind of inconsistency doesn’t even make sense! If any of the Bible is untrue, then all of it comes into doubt—especially given the usual things that have been recorded in the Bible (like fire from Heaven that burns up a soaking-wet offering).

So, future events recorded in the Bible are to be taken every bit as literally as past events. In other words, when the Bible says that we will be “caught up” to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17), that’s exactly what it means.

Some people don’t believe in the Rapture at all, simply because the word rapture isn’t in the Bible. It’s true. The word rapture is not in the English language Bible, but that word came from the Latin Vulgate. In the original Greek Bible, the word is harpadzo (pronounced har-POD-zoh, and written ἁρπάζω), and means to seize, carry off by force; to seize on, claim for one’s self eagerly; to snatch out or away. The Latin version translated harpadzo as rapiemur, from the root rapio, meaning to seize, snatch, carry away. So although the word rapture doesn’t appear in the English translation of the Bible, the concept is clearly there, and it seems like it would be perfectly acceptable to translate Paul’s word harpadzo as rapture.

The next problem that people have with the Rapture is that they confuse it with the Second Coming of Jesus. The Rapture and Second Coming are different events. I can understand the confusion, but let’s look carefully at the differences between the Rapture and the Second Coming:

“My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am,” (John 14:2-3).

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. According to the Lord’s Word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from Heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever, (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17).

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).

Those 3 passages describe the Rapture. The Rapture is all about the Wedding Feast of the Lamb. The words from John: “I go and prepare a place for you, and I will come back and take you to be with me,” are what the bridegroom tells his bride in the Jewish wedding ceremony. Here is a link to an excellent video that shows the Jewish wedding ceremony and explains the connection with the Rapture: The Rapture Revelation. There is a connection, and it’s important because you must remember that Jesus was a Jewish man speaking to Jewish people. So when He these Jewish men: “I go to prepare a place for you,” they understood that He was speaking to them as their Bridegroom speaking to His Bride.

Rapture deniers and others who don’t believe in a Pre-tribulation Rapture say that there won’t be a secret Rapture. It won’t be a secret when it happens. I heard a prophecy that when we are caught up through the devil’s territory (remember, he’s the prince of the power of the air), there will be an EMP effect. Follow the link for that prophecy: EMP Effect at the Rapture.

The following are passages that describe the Second Coming of Jesus:

On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with Him. On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. It will be a unique day—a day known only to the Lord—with no distinction between day and night. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter. The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and His name the only name, (Zechariah 14:4-9).

Immediately after the distress of those days, “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in Heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other, (Matthew 24:29-31).

Where the confusion comes is with this trumpet in Matthew and the trumpet mention in both 1 Corinthians and 1 Thessalonians, above. Here’s a link for a video that explains the difference between these 2 trumpets: The “Last Trump” Explained & Revealed.

There is also confusion with the last part of that passage in Matthew, which sounds like the Rapture. However, it can be explained by understanding the Jewish harvest cycles. The harvest isn’t one single event in Israel, but a series of events. First they take a part of the field that has ripened the fastest—usually from the center of the field. That goes to the Temple, and it is called First Fruits. Then is the general harvest, but they leave the corners because of what is written in Leviticus 23:22: “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am the Lord your God,” (AMP, emphasis mine). The very same is repeated in Leviticus 19:9. So they leave the corners until after the poor have had a chance to gather what they need. Then they harvest the 4 corners, and that is the harvest alluded to in Matthew 24:31, the very last part of the harvest: “He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” To see a great illustration of how the Jewish harvest cycle ties in with the Rapture and the final harvest, see Are There Really Over 7 Rapture Scenarios?

Something interesting that most people overlook is the fact that the book of Revelation is chronological. We can know that by the frequent use of the word then in the book of Revelation—54 times in the NIV.

To sum things up, there are some vast differences between the Rapture and the Second Coming, which I’ve put below:

Rapture—Comes suddenly and without warning (Matthew 25:13)

Second Coming—Preceded by many signs, including the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem (Matthew 24:15; 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4; Revelation 11:1-2)

Rapture—Believers will meet Jesus in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17)

Second Coming—Jesus returns to the Mount of Olives to meet believers on earth (Zechariah 14:4)

Rapture—Mount of Olives remains whole (no change is noted at the Rapture because Jesus will not come all the way down to touch the earth)

Second Coming—Mount of Olives splits when Jesus touches down on it, forming a valley east of Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:4)

Rapture—Believers get glorified bodies (1 Corinthians 15:53-54)

Second Coming—Bodies of remaining believers are unchanged (no such change is noted at the Second Coming)

Second Coming—The world is judged and righteousness is established (Revelation 19:17-20: 15)

Rapture—The Church is saved from God’s wrath (Isaiah 26:20)

Second Coming—Remaining believers have endured the wrath (Matthew 24:22)

Rapture—Only the saved are involved (Matthew 25)

Second Coming—Everyone is involved (Matthew 24:30)

Rapture—Satan remains free (Revelation 18)

Second Coming—Satan is bound for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-3)

Since the Rapture and Second Coming clearly are different events that do not occur at the same time, this would rule out a Post-Tribulation Rapture scenario.

Lately I’ve been waking up with the Rapture on my mind. I believe that it will be soon. And this morning I asked the Lord if He had a Word for me today. I turned to Zephaniah, and here it is, with the section title:

The Day of the Lord Is Near

“Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the Lord is near; the Lord has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated His guests,” (Zephaniah 1:7, ESV).

Be silent before the Lord! The Lord has consecrated His guests! Sounds like a wedding to me! God is good!

The patriarch of my host family here in Hungary, Tibor, teaches earth sciences and is an avid naturalist. There is a glass case in my room with a gem and mineral collection, including petrified wood, a shell collection, and a bug collection (I thankfully noted that they’re all dead). Tibor had been teacher of the morning the day I arrived. Unfortunately, I missed it because I arrived close to midnight.

Tibor likes to learn the English names for plants and animals. The other day he approached me with a plant to smell—I knew it immediately: rosemary. He brought me another one: basil. But he stumped me on the third one, which I had never seen without flowers: oleander. There are also several orchids around the house, and lots of flowers in the garden (where I discovered kittens first thing in the morning after I arrived).

There is a river that runs through their town, and just outside of town is the confluence of this river with another river. He translated for me the names of the rivers: the Black and the White rivers. He delighted to show me the rivers at their confluence and the river dam, where the fishing is good on the spillway and the dammed part is good for motor boating. I saw several holes in the ground as we walked back to the car, and asked about them. When I see holes in the ground, I think “snakes.” But Tibor said that they are mole holes. Given the large number of holes, I think moles are far more likely than snakes.

At the Summer Camp, where I’ve been helping out all week, there is another avid naturalist, Alexander. Unlike Tibor, I think Alexander is strictly a hobbyist, but his passion for all things natural is obvious. Since he doesn’t speak any English, Alexander had never approached me. But since I have a curiosity about nature, I approached him. Alexander brought an enormous telescope to church and had it set up in the yard during snack time. It was equipped with a special filter for viewing the sun. He showed me a book with a picture of sunspots and gestured at the telescope. I looked through it and sure enough, there were several sunspots, just like in the book.

The next day Alexander brought a jar, and from it he produced a live bug about an inch and a half long. He was letting the children touch and hold the bug (depending on their willingness). I looked on, amazed as always at how children could touch something that I simply cannot bring myself to touch. Seeing my curiosity, he approached me with the bug and held it out for me. My body language made it obvious to him that I have a fear of bugs. He tried to reassure me that it was harmless, and even if I had understood the words he used, it would have made no difference. There’s something deep inside me, an ancient revulsion, that cannot be reasoned away. I’ve faced all my other fears and conquered them all: flying, heights, public speaking. But as much as I would like to conquer this last fear, there’s just something too ingrained to be overcome.

It’s not real, but real enough for me! EEEEEEEEK!

The following day Alexander came to me holding a bug that was four inches long—it was made of rubber. He tried to get me to touch the rubber bug. I couldn’t even touch it. I understand that he was trying to help me overcome this unreasoning fear of bugs. And I appreciate it, but I couldn’t bring myself to touch it. He didn’t push it, but backed-off as soon as he saw that I couldn’t do it. The bug had a suction cup on its belly, so he stuck it to his watch, and proceeded to show me other things he had brought: a plastic lizard, a wooden turtle, and several nature books.

The final day of Summer Camp, Alexander showed me several old calendars he had: calendars of Alaska, calendars of sea creatures, calendars of birds. As he showed me page after page of wonders, he chattered as though I could understand. What I did understand is both his passion for nature, and his kindness toward me and toward the children.

Last night Tibor had a surprise for me. He took me to meet the town cheese-maker. The cheeseman showed us how he makes the cheese. He put a piece of aged cheese under my nose and was surprised to see how much I appreciated the smell. I explained that I live in Italy, so I know that the stinkier the cheese is, the better it tastes. He appreciated that.

Today there was a conference for the seniors of the church, at which Pastor H. Koraćs Gėza spoke. I was told that I would have about five minutes to speak to them. So of course I prayed about it, and here’s what I said:

Looking out here at all the gray hair, I am aware that many of you and your parents kept your faith in Christ under the oppressive rule of the atheistic Communists. I have two things to say to you: First, I am deeply sorry that my country believed the lies of the Communists and did nothing to help you. Secondly, I know that someday you will trade your silver crowns for gold crowns. I am here to honor you for your faithful service to your Lord and mine.

To the young people here I say: learn from these elders, and share the love of Christ with everyone you know.

And finally, I would like to thank Pastor Gėza for coming. It is an honor to meet you.

When Pastor Gėza returned to the platform, he observed that Christianity had actually flourished and grown under Communist oppression. He said that Christianity now faces a far more dangerous enemy in the form of complacency. I believe he’s right.

Tonight at dinner, Piroska, the matriarch of this family observed: today has been a day of spiritual cleaning. Yes, indeed, it was!

Tithing is an important principle that many Christians misunderstand. Tithing was established in Genesis 14:18-20 when Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything he had. Melchizedek was the King of Salem and a priest of God Almighty. Hebrews chapters 5 and 6 explain that Jesus is our high priest in the order of Melchizedek. And tithing is the key to blessings, as explained in Malachi 3:10, which says:

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”

Many Christians don’t realize (or just don’t like the fact) that tithing is not optional. Giving ten percent of our income is our part of the covenant with God. And many fail to understand the importance of doing the tithe correctly. Ten percent is the minimum, and it must be the first fruits (Exodus 23:19). In other words, as soon as you’re paid, before you write a check for the rent or mortgage, car payment, groceries, or other bills, first you give a tenth of your income to God.

And some say that tithing was only for those people who lived before grace. Wrong! Tithing is part of the covenant with God. God made a covenant with Israel and still honors the covenant. He also honors the tithe covenant when we do our part.

A lot of people think of tithing as giving to the church (a frequently flawed human institution). In reality, they are giving back to God from what He has given them. And it’s funny, but a ten percent grocery store coupon seems hardly worth the trouble, but ten percent of your income seems enormous. They give what they can or they give whatever’s left after all the bills are paid. Then they wonder why they are still struggling financially. It’s because they are giving God their leftovers. The rich people in Luke 21:1-4 were giving God their leftovers, but the widow gave sacrificially. Ten percent off the top is so hard to do that many Christians just don’t do it. Have you ever noticed the number of coins and one-dollar bills that go by in the offering basket? Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you,” (Luke 6:38).

This past year my income was cut in half, but I never felt the pinch. When I learned that my income would be significantly less, I gave the problem to God and continued to do everything I needed to do in our ministry: travel, meet with missionaries over coffee or a meal, etc. In fact, I didn’t waste any time wondering if God would provide. You see, His Word says that He is my Provider, and crazy as that sounds, I believe it. I’m a faithful tither, and I believed that He would open the windows of Heaven for me. When I returned to the US with Christmas and all my big bills coming due (property taxes, registration and inspection on the car, etc.), my brother informed me that our Grandfather’s second wife had died. That dear lady remembered us in her will, and left enough to make up for the shortfall, but not enough to be taxable. I could never have predicted where the money would come from, and never dreamed that she would leave something for us in her will.

I had other expenses at that time, too, because I needed to do a lot of traveling in the US in order to attend missions conferences and speak at churches about missions in Europe. Where would the money for travel and conferences come from? I didn’t know, but I knew that God would provide. Since I would be out of the country for several months, I had some valuable Indian pottery that I wrapped up and left at my brother’s house before returning to Europe. Just before returning home, my brother’s house burned down. My pottery miraculously survived the collapse of the house, but the black-on-black glaze that had made these three pieces valuable and unique was burned off. I didn’t want to make a claim on his insurance because my brother literally lost everything, so my claim was on my own homeowner’s insurance. The insurance company carefully investigated, photographed, ordered an appraisal, and discovered the value of the pottery, which was far more than I had ever imagined. The insurance claim more than paid the expense of travel.

But that’s not all: my brother and sister-in-law, now without their house, had moved into my house. They knew that I intended to sell my house, so they helped me clean it out, repair it, and get it ready to sell. We came across a collection of wheat pennies that my father had left me. I had taken the collection to a coin dealer several years before, so I didn’t think my chances of selling the collection was very good because wheat pennies are not very valuable or rare. Still, I took it to a coin dealer with a reputation for being honest and fair. His reaction was more or less what I expected. He said a wheat penny is worth 1½ cents—not really worth his time. Then I remembered that at the bottom of the sack there was one penny in a plastic holder. I pulled it out and his eyes popped. He grabbed his coin book and looked it up. He showed me what the book said and offered me $650 for the whole collection.

Sometime later, I had attended all but the last conference, which was scheduled for the week before my return to Europe. I had the feeling that this conference was important, but two things bothered me: I hadn’t had any communication from them, even after numerous e-mail inquiries—possibly it had been cancelled! The conference was in Halifax, Canada, and the cost to fly there was about $600. Nevertheless, I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was important for me to go, so I prayed about it again, asking God if He really wanted me to go, and pointing out the cost. Immediately He responded, “The cost for you is only a penny.” I laughed, and it still makes me laugh. I love that God has a sense of humor!

A speaker at that conference said this: “Some of you are laboring to have Ishmael, when God wants you to sit quietly and wait for Isaac.” I got Isaac (financial provision), through no effort of my own. I didn’t even wear God’s ears out with praying for provision. He did it for me—He will do it for you, too!